


Submerge

by nh8343



Category: Super Junior
Genre: Angst, Drama, M/M, Psychological
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-14
Updated: 2017-07-26
Packaged: 2018-12-01 22:04:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11495655
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nh8343/pseuds/nh8343
Summary: As the days grow shorter and their cause grows ever more desperate, Hyukjae wonders when they’ll finally be able to stop running. Months? Years? It’s impossible to say when time lost its meaning so long ago. Here, there are only sunsets. Endless sunsets.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> In honor of our two-year wait finally coming to an end. Written with love, as always, for Lexie.

 

 

I.

 

Late afternoon.

 

Hyukjae eyes the sun’s progress across the sky, estimating how much time he has left.

 

The market he's found himself in isn't helping with his concentration. It's crowded, noisy, and far too hot. Maybe under different circumstances there would be a certain charm to it all, if he had time to scope out the city's hidden gems. But not having that luxury is exactly the problem.

 

He ducks into a nearby bar that he'd scoped out this morning, finally giving up on finding the information that he needs on his own. There are questions Hyukjae knows he won't find the answer to, but at least a step in the right direction should be doable.

 

The interior of the bar is dark and smoky. It takes a moment for Hyukjae’s eyes to adjust to the low lighting. But when they do, he sees how patrons are packed in from wall to wall, spirits flowing freely between them. A hub of excitement in the middle of this otherwise mundane town.

 

The bartender is at the back wall serving drinks, eyeing him warily. Hyukjae makes a beeline towards him and ignores the stares he's starting to get.

 

"I'm looking for someone," he says. "He would have been here earlier today asking questions about the town. Any leads on where I could find him?"

 

The bartender's eyes have narrowed to slits. Hostility practically radiates from his body, punctuated by a crisp "I think you should leave."

 

Time is running out. Hyukjae can feel it slipping away from him by the second. With his quest to get answers now futile, he turns to leave, and finds the eyes of all the bar's patrons upon him with that same hostile glare. He quickly slips back out through the front door.

 

The moment he steps outside, a voice shouts from somewhere nearby, "There he is!"

 

Hyukjae doesn't hesitate to take off running. The sounds of the guards stay at his back as he sprints through the marketplace, dodging booths, carts of goods, and civilians alike. Said civilians do their best to aggressively trip him up and send him packing off to prison. Hyukjae tries not to be too offended that in their efforts to stop him, they tear the tunic he'd stolen this morning from the same market. The clothes are, after all, not his.

 

The chase soon meets the market's end. Wide, packed paths give way to a crisscrossed maze of side alleys, and Hyukjae manages to evade his pursuers just long enough to break from their line of sight and duck into the darkest one he can find. He presses flat against the wall while he catches his breath. But safety is temporary; he needs to get out of here before they send more search parties and cage him in.

 

He slinks along the alley quietly, running some calculations for escape in his head from what he's gleaned of the city during his short time here. It will depend on how much of a route he can remember, yes, but there's always another more important factor. One look at the sun tells Hyukjae that his options have narrowed down to a small few. He's about to leave the safety of the shadows...but then a familiar voice reaches his ears.

 

The passage to his left opens up into another town square, where he can see the owner of said voice fighting off a group of guards with a longsword. It's fitting, really, because the weapon matches well with the rather tacky adventurer outfit he'd insisted on stealing that morning along with Hyukjae's more reserved choice. But its flashiness doesn't detract from the skills being put on display.

 

 _Show off_ , Hyukjae thinks to himself with a smile.

 

He intervenes with a well-timed slash of another sword, a present from a fallen guard that had laid itself on the concrete so invitingly for him. His target lets out a grunt, and Donghae looks up at him in surprise.

 

"Need some help there?" Hyukjae can't help but quip.

 

Donghae grins. "You're just in time."

 

It's not an easy task to fend off the city's guards, but it's a doable one with how much their teamwork has evolved. Hyukjae stands back to back with Donghae as he flourishes his borrowed weapon with a practiced grace. The sound of clanging metal fills the air, his wrist twirling to intercept enemy blades while he lashes out with his own. One by one, their enemies fall.

 

Hyukjae almost drops his sword and takes a breath, but it's not over. He hears footsteps moments before more guards show up on the edge of the square. One look at Donghae, one exchange of a nod, and they're off at a breakneck pace.

 

"Did you find the core?" Hyukjae asks the other man as they run, struggling to keep his voice steady. He doesn't like to admit it to himself, but Hyukjae is far from in peak condition. A stumble and near fall when they round a sharp corner confirm as much.

 

"After my side-trip to the catacombs, I have an idea of where it is, but I don't think—"

 

The ground shifts underneath their feet just as the rumbling starts. In an instant, the world starts to break down, pillars folding at their centers, rooftops caving, pathways buckling. An avalanche of debris cascades down from a fallen tower in front of their path, forcing them to come up short.

 

"...that the world will hold up long enough," Donghae finishes, his point clearly made.

 

Damn it, they were close this time. Closer than they'd gotten in a while, if Donghae really was that confident in his lead. When would be the next time they weren't running blind? A week? A year? Not that time really mattered, when all was said and done. Just the sunsets. Endless sunsets.

 

"I'm sorry, Hyukjae. If I thought we had any chance..."

 

Hyukjae waves it off and masks his frown, conceding to what he knows is their only option. Disappointment strains his heart with a phantom ache.

 

He does his best to outrun the feeling. Their shoes kick up dust and gravel as they navigate through the collapsing rubble, running until they're clear of the city gates. The world doesn't stop falling apart, but they don't stop running. The collapse won't have them today.

 

Their escape is just outside of the gates. A great tear in the atmosphere hovers inches above the ground, pulsing with a blue-purple glow that Hyukjae has come to know by heart: a portal. The eye of the hurricane, promising relief from the total breakdown of time and space going on all around it.

 

The hillside they're standing on begins to tilt off the edge of an invisible rift. Time's up.

 

"Let's go," Donghae tells him, holding out a hand that Hyukjae takes by instinct.

 

They step together into the glowing gate, and the world goes white.

 

 

II.

 

When Hyukjae's world shifts back into focus, the first thing that hits him is the silence. Compared to the destruction they'd left behind, this new setting is far more serene. He's definitely on a ship —a pirate ship, he amends when he sees their flag— but there's no crew to speak of, nothing but the ambient sounds of fluttering sails and rocking waves.

 

He sees Donghae standing next to him, running his hand along the wooden rigging as he takes in their new setting. Gears are already visibly turning in the other man's head.

 

"So, new world, new core. Any guesses this time?" Hyukjae asks him. "Under the ocean? On some deserted island?"

 

"Hard to say, but there has to be at least some kind of clue to tell us. And since we're on a pirate ship...what better way to give a clue than with a treasure map?"

 

"Good thinking. Let's check out the cabin," Hyukjae agrees, still taking a few more moments to look at the sea despite himself. The vastness of the ocean they've found themselves in the middle of is too beautiful not to admire for a little while longer. When he turns to go, he sees Donghae staring at him.

 

"What is it?" he asks, feeling unexpectedly self-conscious.

 

Donghae opens his mouth, but closes it before he can say what's on his mind. "Nothing. Let's go."

 

They break into the Captain's cabin with a makeshift lockpick fashioned from a piece of wood snapped off the ship's hull. It's not the most elegant tool, but it gets the job done.

 

("You had no idea how to do this when we first started off," Donghae says when the lock springs open, failing to contain his laughter.)

 

(He's not wrong.)

 

The cabin is far more luxurious than the rest of the ship. Red satin adorns the windows and walls, decorative wooden pillars in each corner are etched with intricate designs, and gold trim laces every piece of furniture. But they only briefly eye the glamor, going straight for the desk in the center of the room. An old canvas is rolled up on the wooden surface. Donghae flattens it out with a successful smile: a treasure map.

 

"We'll sail north," Donghae says, tracing a finger along the canvas's faded surface. "The sea narrows into the mouth of a channel. We can take that and come out in the inlet _here_ where the treasure, along with the core, should be buried near the shore. As long as we make good enough time, it's possible."

 

Hyukjae has to admit he's impressed; it's been a while since they've been on any sort of ship, and Donghae has managed to retain a lot of what they'd learned through trial and error (though mostly the latter). Maybe what they've learned will be enough to lead them to this world's core. Of course, that last ship ride in the arctic hadn't exactly ended well...

 

When they head back up to the deck, the sky is still clear. But the storm clouds on the horizon are ever more prevalent, a threatening mass at the end of their charted course. Hyukjae can almost feel the ticking resume on their far too short countdown. They need more time. But isn't that always the case? If they ever had enough, they wouldn't still be trapped here in this endless maze of worlds.

 

Hyukjae senses Donghae's eyes upon him once again and turns around, saying more firmly this time, "You can just ask me, you know."

 

"I just wasn't sure how to bring this up. But, Hyukjae...collapse times have gotten shorter and shorter. The sun is going down much sooner than it should. And since we're inside _your_ mind..."

 

"You think something's wrong with me," Hyukjae finishes for him, a chill going down his spine. He's had similar thoughts, but hearing it said aloud by someone else makes it too real for his own comfort.

 

"I have no idea. When we went under, I know your mind was fragile even then. You were in a coma, infected with a virus that threatened to shut your body down entirely."

 

"A detail that I try not to think too much about.”

 

"Hang on," Donghae insists. "I'm getting somewhere with this. What if because your mind was fragile when we both were transported here, it can't handle us world-jumping all around your consciousness? What if it's growing weaker, which is why it's collapsing sooner?"

 

Hyukjae shakes his head, not wanting to consider it. "Jungsoo wouldn't have gone through with the procedure if he thought we were in danger."

 

"He didn't agree with it in the first place. I had to fight tooth and nail to be able to come in here with you. At the time, I thought it was because he was worried about me being in danger, but what if the one put in harm's way is _you_?"

 

The look on Donghae's face hurts Hyukjae more than he can say.

 

"I'm fine, okay?" he says. "I'm just tired, and maybe the collapse times are different for different worlds. We can't exactly claim to be experts of this place, even after all the time we've spent here. This is what’s going to happen: we're going to find a world core and get out of here as fast as we can, so that I can be back in top form and virus-free.”

 

Hyukjae can tell Donghae doesn't find his answer entirely satisfactory, but better that than have the other man lose his mind worrying over him.

 

They sail on without further discussion. The sky stays clear for a while, but their north-bound route eventually leads them right into the path of the growing darkness on the horizon. Storm clouds hit, dousing them in an immediate curtain of rain, and the sun disappears like a light switch being turned off. Choppier waves threaten to throw them off course entirely. They're soaked and struggling to navigate, but even through the storm they manage to handle everything this world throws at them.

 

Then the giant kraken attacks.

 

A monstrous creature rises out of the water like a figure of Death itself. Red eyes pierce somewhere beneath Hyukjae's skin, and a horrible gurgling noise issues from the depths of the ocean, unnatural and horrifying. Eight scaled tentacles rise up around the ship in a cage. And chaos begins.

 

Hyukjae just barely manages to jump out of the way as one tentacle comes crashing down where he was standing seconds before, separating a chunk of the deck from the rest of the ship. The wood crashes somewhere into the sea of tentacles and ever-growing waves. Hyukjae's eyes don't see it hit the water; he's too busy catching his breath after the narrow escape. He doesn't know what happens if he dies in his own mind, but he doesn't intend on finding out.

 

When the kraken strikes again, Hyukjae struggles to find enough energy to jump away and comes up short. Running on half-empty for so long seems to have finally caught up with him in the worst possible way. The tentacle comes crashing down, Hyukjae curls in on himself as he braces for impact—

 

Arms pull him to safety, giving him an up-close view of what could have been the end.

 

"We need to find a portal!" Donghae shouts over the sounds of destruction. His eyes scan Hyukjae as he speaks, making sure the other man really is in one piece. "It's too dangerous to keep sailing for the core!"

 

Hyukjae does what he's been doing a lot of recently: he silently nods and follows.

 

Donghae slams the trapdoor shut behind them as make their way back down into the ship's belly. On a shared hunch, they rush to the captain's cabin, moving unsteadily from the shaking of the kraken's continued assault. The treasure map is still rolled up on the desk, the same red satin ties the room up like a bow, but that's it. No portal.

 

With a heaving groan, the floor in the cabin splinters, and Donghae nearly falls into the sea. Hyukjae grabs onto him just in time, pulling him back from the edge with what little strength he can muster. They don't have to tell each other where they're heading as they sprint toward the back of the ship. Unless the nearest portal is at the bottom of the ocean, this is their only option.

 

Hyukjae slams the door open so hard that the wood splinters. He catches a glimpse of the glowing portal inside just as another violent explosion rocks the ship, and they start to pitch forward into the water.

 

There's no time for hesitation. Hyukjae grabs on to Donghae, and together, they jump through.

 

 

III.

 

When they come through the portal, Hyukjae falls to his knees. Dirt and grass press against his palms as he catches his breath, a tree trunk hitting solidly against his back when he sits up.

 

They're...in some sort of rainforest, is Hyukjae’s best guess. He scans the area with an almost phantom sense of interest, feeling too drained to take in the tall trees and heavy foliage. Rain pours from the sky even harder than it had when they were at sea, but thankfully the leaves in their landing spot give them cover from the downpour.

 

Hyukjae draws his eyes down from the canopy to see Donghae kneeling in front of him, checking on instinct for the physical wounds that they both know won't be there. Not after another jump. But Hyukjae can still appreciate the sentiment behind it.

 

"I mean it when I ask this time," Donghae says seriously. "We've only made it this far because we've stayed honest with each other. Are you okay, Hyukjae?"

 

_If I tell him, he'll worry. He'll know just how bad it's gotten. But he's right; if I don't..._

 

"No," Hyukjae admits, feeling a weight lifted off his shoulders. "Not for...I don't know how long it's been. I can't keep up with you anymore; it feels like I'm falling deeper and deeper into this pit of exhaustion with every new world we go to. I don't know what's wrong with me."

 

Donghae takes his hands, looking at him earnestly. "You can tell me these things, okay? Anything that's on your mind, any time it starts to be too much. You know that."

 

"I do. I'm sorry, I just...I'm sorry."

 

Donghae leans forward, asking with his eyes before their lips meet in the softest of touches. And just for a moment, Hyukjae can breathe.

 

When Donghae leans back, he doesn't let go. He keeps Hyukjae's face cupped in his hands, looking at him tenderly, and Hyukjae can't help but melt into the touch. His eyelids nearly flutter shut again at the sense of calm that comes over him.

 

"I need...can we rest?" Hyukjae asks. His words have started to slur together.

 

"I can only give you an hour. I'm sorry," Donghae tells him, sounding guilty. "If the last world was any sign, collapse times will only get shorter. We have to move even faster than we're used to if we want to get out in time."

 

Hyukjae practically collapses onto the forest floor. The gears in his head refuse to stop spinning in time for him to fall asleep before they have to leave, but at the very least he gets to rest his eyes. He walks at Donghae's side with weary steps as they make their way deeper into the foliage.

 

Their journey is a taxing one. Trees stand as giants before them, blocking the view of their path every time they set a new course. And what the trees don't block, the greenery does: everywhere they look, it's the same swath of flora and fauna. There are some places to take shelter along the way under the protection of such plants, which Hyukjae counts as a blessing. The rain soaks them to the bone whenever they venture out from the shelters. Even shedding layers to counter the humidity and using that extra fabric to protect themselves from the rain is only a temporary solution, the pieces becoming soaked and useless for too quickly.

 

They choose to make their next temporary camp under another protected canopy of leaves. Hyukjae knows it's primarily for his benefit, so he fully embraces the opportunity to sit and let his body recover. Donghae paces as they start to reevaluate their strategy.

 

"It feels like we're not making progress," Donghae flat-out admits. "For all we know, we could be blindly wandering in circles. There must be a better way to find where the core is hidden."

 

Hyukjae awkwardly laces and unlaces his fingers, not making eye contact. "I _do_ have abilities I can use, things I can manipulate inside of my own head. Maybe I could try to—"

 

"Not an option," Donghae cuts in. "I'd have to be blind not to see what that does to you. None of our mission means anything if you lose your mind trying to save it."

 

In the silence that follows, Hyukjae banishes the earlier thought from his mind, somewhat relieved that he won't have to resort to an extreme. But to truly avoid it, he needs a better option, or at least a different one. Something obvious they've overlooked, something like...

 

"Couldn't we climb one of the trees for a better vantage point? Maybe we can see a clear path from there."

 

Donghae nods, and a short while later they're struggling up the thick branches on the side of the tallest tree they can find. It's a hike far more treacherous than on the forest floor: twigs snap off as they ascend, and Hyukjae nearly slips to his doom from the rain-slicked surface before he grabs onto another branch and steadies himself.

 

After what feels like another day entirely, they reach the top. Hyukjae hoists himself above the leaves to look around from this superior vantage point of the rainforest. In another life, it would be beautiful. But his focus is only on a small anomaly in the distance, differentiating itself from the endless sea of green.

 

"There's...something this way. Maybe some sort of oasis, or at least a clearing worth checking out."

 

"Everything else is trees and more trees. I won't argue with you; let's get there before the collapse starts." Donghae steals a glance at Hyukjae, noticing the other man’s heaving chest from the exertion of the climb. "Or let's at least try our best."

 

As it turns out, Hyukjae's fatigue isn't what brings their steady hike to an end. They're halfway there when the daylight begins to fade and the slide into chaos starts to go into motion. Twisted forest creatures jump at them from the shadows, resembling Frankensteinian experiments more than they do animals. The unnatural screeches that issue from their jaws send shivers down Hyukjae's spine as he and Donghae break into a sprint, and Hyukjae runs as fast as his weary legs will carry him.

 

The rainforest is not forgiving. Low-hanging vines and brambles threaten to set them back, cutting into flesh even when avoided. Creatures snap at their heels as they struggle to navigate through a maze with endless possibilities and nearly identical spreads of vegetation. A howl sounds at Hyukjae's back, and he's forced to take a sharp right to avoid running directly into a tree.

 

"Donghae!" he calls, not sure which side of him the other man is on. He's breathing too heavily to pick out a second set of footfalls.

 

There's no answer. Hyukjae feels himself start to panic, tries and fails not to think the worst.

 

The trees open up into the clearing he'd seen from up above. The creatures don't let up their chase, but Hyukjae nearly chokes on his relief when he sees Donghae appear from another side of the same clearing. They race toward the center. And to Hyukjae's utter disappointment, not toward a world core. It's just another portal. Another promise of another doomed world. His heart breaks.

 

"Don't stop running!" Donghae shouts as he races to close the distance between them, and Hyukjae snaps back to attention.

 

He can mourn, but not now, not at the expense of all the work they've done so far. He wills himself to have one last burst of speed, and Donghae reaches out his hand just in time, grasping Hyukjae's tightly as they jump through the portal.

 

 

IV.

 

Hyukjae takes a deep breath, only to find that he can't breathe at all.

 

A strangled sound escapes his lips, and he clutches at his throat as he stumbles backward, unable to take in his surroundings when his lungs keep coming up short of air.

 

Loose stones shift under Hyukjae's feet in a spot he doesn't see. He struggles to find footing, but it's too late. His body careens backwards and breaks through water before he can stop himself.

 

A cloud of bubbles temporarily encases his vision. Hyukjae struggles to see which way is up, gulping down rapid gasps of air as he does so, and...

 

 _I can breathe_.

 

With one focused movement, he propels himself back up to the surface, grabbing Donghae's ankle and pulling the other man into the water with a splash. Safe.

 

The two of them breathe heavily as they sink to the ocean floor, physical wounds healed as they always are between worlds but not the mental strain. Hyukjae thinks at first that he can still hold himself together. But the moment he hits the ground, he has to bury his head in his hands, collecting himself enough to continue.

 

A gentle hand rests on his back, and Donghae asks, just audibly, "Anything I can do?"

 

Even when the other man's voice is distorted in the water, quieter than usual, it still has that same feeling of comfort and security. Hyukjae doesn't respond, but he takes Donghae's hand in his own and allows himself another few deep breaths.

 

"Honestly, Hyukjae, what kinds of things does your mind dream up?" Donghae asks him, making a weak attempt at a joke. A wan smile makes its way to Hyukjae's face.

 

"If we make it back, I'll have to ask Jungsoo what he slipped into that syringe to put us under."

 

A beat of silence.

 

"We'll make it back," Donghae says firmly. "Don't give up, alright?"

 

Hyukjae squeezes his hand one last time, not answering. "Let's go."

 

They swim into the deep ocean, heading in the opposite direction of the rocky ledge they both fell from. It's a strange sensation being able to breathe, a feeling that's especially poignant given the emptiness of their surroundings. The ocean provides nothing but endless blue and the sunlight filtering down from above, the latter lost as they go further and deeper in. But even just the blue is a sight to see: Hyukjae considers it one of the most beautiful places they've been to.

 

When the ocean floor begins to even out, they come to a point where it drops off into even deeper waters. The edge of the cliff provides a vantage point of the seafloor beyond — and the city just beyond the drop-off.

 

Even without sunlight, the buildings shimmer, shifting color from one end of the spectrum to the other nearly faster than Hyukjae's eyes can process. Golden spikes and trimmings adorn those shimmering towers, and the castle they surround dwarfs what are already impressive structures.

 

As for the city's inhabitants...Hyukjae can't be positive from this distance, but he could swear that they look like merfolk. Not the romanticized half-humans from the fairytales. Not the gentle, playful sea-dwellers of superstition. These are true sea creatures with bulging eyes and gills, with scaled tails that propel them through the water at inhuman speeds.

 

With a silent nod to Hyukjae, Donghae leads them closer to the city, angling their approach out of sight from the main gate. They both keep a sharp eye out for a less obvious entrance along the wall. These merfolk may not be hostile now, but as with all 'living' things in Hyukjae's mind, they'll turn violent as soon as time runs down.

 

The guards are absent from their post at one small section of the wall. Hyukjae and Donghae immediately seize the opportunity, swimming up and over the wall and taking cover behind the nearest structure. It takes a few more moments of silently floating in place before they're certain: safety. For as long as it will last.

 

Hyukjae's first instinct is to head toward the center of the city.

 

"To the castle?" he asks, triggering a stream of bubbles to issue from his lips.

 

Donghae frowns at the question. "That was my first assumption, too, but...the world core is at the center of a _world_ , isn't it? The castle is the physical center, but I think the clue leading to the actual center might be—"

 

"The temple," Hyukjae finishes.

 

He can see where Donghae's thoughts are headed; if he takes one more sweeping glance of the city, he can see the one detail which had escaped his initial observations. A domed temple near their current position has a giant, jagged crystal attached to its front, refracting light from within the building onto the rest of the city to create those shifting colors. It's hard to put his finger on exactly what it is, as so many things created by his subconscious often are, but with one look Hyukjae can feel that the ebb and flow of the world is focused here.

 

They don't waste another moment. Once Donghae seconds Hyukjae's hunch with his own, they head in the temple's direction, staying low and hidden in the shadows to avoid the flow of merfolk above. Swimming anywhere near the crystal would mean instant detection, but the back of the roof is unguarded. Donghae keeps watch as Hyukjae peers in through one of the glass portholes into the temple below. His eyes scan the elegant interior without finding much of interest, until he sees something curious at the edge of the space and moves to get a better view.

 

There's a glowing image projected on the temple's back wall. Hyukjae can make out what looks like a huge clam surrounded by underwater vents, their smoke nearly obscuring the projection. Some sort of gem rests in the center of the clam, and as he peers at it, Hyukjae gets a feeling in his chest that lets him know: this is the world core. If they can find this place, they can go home.

 

"Vents," he murmurs near Donghae's ear, pulling back from the porthole, and the other man doesn't question it. He immediately scans the horizon, pointing in the distance when he finds what he's looking for.

 

Hyukjae's eyes follow the outstretched finger until they see the billowing smoke in the distance, just visible from where they're floating. Deep-sea vents. They take off swimming without another word.

 

The armory is only a small detour from the path back out over the wall. They steal two golden tridents from the outdoor display before they can be caught and swim in the vents' direction with purposeful strokes. Hyukjae still doesn't like taking what doesn't belong to him, but he's not about to swim into the deep ocean unarmed. Even when they're far from the merfolk city, he keeps a wary eye on the fish that start to appear in increasing numbers.

 

Hyukjae is just glad this isn't like real swimming —it's more like purposeful floating— because otherwise he doesn't think he'd be able to make the journey.

 

Even if the smoke hadn't been a giveaway, they'd be able to tell when they were approaching the vents. The schools of colorful fish seem to disappear, giving way to a feeling of vague uneasiness, and Hyukjae grips the trident tighter as he swims. It's been too long. The world should be falling apart by now. If they're underwater, how would that even...?

 

A sudden shadow in the corner of his vision catches Hyukjae's attention, and he cries out just in time for Donghae to look up and see a shark diving their way like a harpoon.

 

Hyukjae doesn't get the time to be relieved that the spikes on Donghae's trident save him from the initial attack. A second shark comes for Hyukjae, and his own trident just barely keeps it at bay, jaws snapping far too close for comfort.

 

They slowly retreat backward into the vents, fending off both sharks with defensive blocking and prodding. They've nearly made it when one shark bites off the end of Donghae's trident. Hyukjae sees the other man's face go white before he pulls Donghae to safety amongst the vents, sharks snapping dangerously at their heels for another few moments before they disappear.

 

This new area is a stark contrast to the wide, open ocean. A deep canyon cuts into the ocean floor, littered with tubular vents that shoot up thick smoke into the water. Hyukjae's instincts practically yell at him to avoid the discharge. The bubbles that issue from each vent are hot, discolored, and probably toxic, not to mention the sense of danger radiating from the smoke. This place isn't a friendly one.

 

"Hyukjae," Donghae calls in his direction, "Is that...?"

 

Hyukjae turns back toward the sound of his voice, and he sees a glow that imprints itself on the backs of his eyelids, filling him up with a deep understanding of something he can't name. The clam he'd seen in the projection lies further ahead in the canyon. And within its shell rests an orb that shines brighter than any star. Hyukjae has never seen a world core this close, never been able to appreciate its beauty until now. A light in the midst of this madness.

 

But that madness still remains, slithering out from the ocean depths to signal that their time is up. A terrible groaning sounds from all around them, and the sound echoes through the canyon to send shivers down their spines. Before Hyukjae can move, a rip in the fabric of the word opens up on his right. A portal. Its glow lights up the walls of the space even through the crumbling debris that turns the water dark and perilous.

 

But this isn't the time for temporary escape. This is the time for closure. Hyukjae dives for the world core, fingertips outstretched—

 

Only for a collapsing chunk of the ocean canyon to slam into him, knocking his body into the bubbling water above one of the vents.

 

Faster than Hyukjae can react, the vent shoots up a billowing column of toxic discharge. He feels the chemicals that engulf him eat through fabric and flesh just before a hand grabs him, pulling what's left of his damaged body through the portal.

 

 

V.

 

Hyukjae's face breaks through the surface of the water, a muted gasp all that remains of the scream of pain dying in his throat.

 

He's naked, and not just in the literal sense. Hyukjae feels raw and exposed, skin and muscle restored but feeling unnatural and stretched too tightly. Shivers take over as he sits in whatever pool of water he's ended up in, curling up and holding his knees close to his chest. Hyukjae wants to calm down, wants to stop trembling, but the thoughts pounding in his head insist upon being heard.

 

 _I was so close. So close to getting us out of here, and then so close to..._ His fingers dig tighter into skin, reassuring himself that he's still all there. _I've been in danger before, in nearly every world we've been to. I've seen a hundred times over how it could have happened. But I've never..._

 

Donghae's careful hands help him out of the water, dry Hyukjae's shaking body with one of the towels folded in the room before they help him into new clothes. Hyukjae's movements are almost mechanical as he goes through the motions. The dissociation he feels from his own body would frighten him more if he wasn't still in such a state of shock.

 

When their eyes finally meet, Donghae is looking at him with a profound sadness.

 

"Hey..." he starts in a whisper, and Hyukjae feels himself break.

 

He turns away from Donghae just as the tears start to come. The other man is immediately behind him, holding him with a fierceness that Hyukjae nearly feels like he doesn't deserve. Murmured words make their way to Hyukjae's ears, full of encouragement and reassurance. But he can only cry into his shaking hands.

 

What was different this time? The nearness of death, however literal it would turn out to be, the growing hopelessness of their escape, the exhaustion that's catching up with him. Hyukjae has been so skilled with compartmentalizing these things to deal with later. But for some reason now he slips and falters with tucking those boxes away.

 

A soft puff of air caresses the nape of his neck, and Hyukjae feels soft, comforting kisses pressed there, moving toward his jaw before they circle back. He tries to find peace in the steady rhythm, willing himself to relax. This moment of weakness has to pass. It takes another long few moments, but Hyukjae stitches those jagged pieces of himself back together enough for them to continue. He attaches them in fragile seams that, from a distance, almost make him look like he’s okay.

 

But he's not. Not even close. Both psychologically and physically, Hyukjae is barely staying afloat. Donghae has to guide him out of the room and into the hallway, keeping a steadying arm wrapped around Hyukjae's still-shaking form.

 

The hallway has high-vaulted ceilings, with jeweled columns that reach toward stained-glass windows and painted mosaics. Green velvet carpets crunch under their feet as they pass alcove after alcove holding what are surely priceless vases and statues. There's no doubt that they've found themselves in some sort of palace. But Hyukjae finds it hard to enjoy the luxury surrounding them when he can hardly keep his eyes open.

 

He can feel himself growing weaker, strength being sapped from his body with every step until at last he can't take it anymore. He stops in the middle of the hallway, bringing Donghae to a halt. The other man looks at him in concern.

 

"Please," Hyukjae says simply. The quiet words nearly don't make it past his lips. "Let's give up on finding the core this time. We can wait here until the portals open and try again in the next world. I have to rest."

 

"Hyukjae..." Hyukjae had never wanted to see what it looked like when Donghae's heart broke, but he finds out anyway. "We don't have the luxury of choice. The only way we can both rest is if we find the core and escape."

 

Hyukjae relents with his head bowed, continuing on without any further objections. In his heart, he knows that Donghae is right, but it doesn't change the fact that he's suffering. It doesn't change that he isn't sure how much longer he can keep going.

 

There's a spiral staircase at the end of the hallway that they take down to the lower level. Hyukjae has a scattered impression of crystal chandeliers through the fog in his mind, just before a shout sounds from nearby. Guards.

 

An alarm rings soon after the discovery, followed by a hoard of pounding footsteps, and Hyukjae clings to Donghae for dear life as they try to outrun this new enemy.

 

The next archway leads them to the grand dining hall. Hyukjae can feel Donghae's arm tense as the other man looks around for their avenue of escape, and once he takes in the room he realizes why. There _is_ no other doorway. They've reached a dead end. Any thoughts of retracing their route are crushed by the appearance of the guards where they'd come in, swords drawn with the sound of grim finality. For every backward step Hyukjae and Donghae take toward the furthest wall, toward those towering stained-glass windows, the guards advance another two. They’re trapped.

 

"Maybe they just want to take us in as prisoners," Donghae half-heartedly suggests. "They could lead us right to the world core."

 

Hyukjae takes one look at the line of swords, the looks of cruelty on the men's faces, and knows that's far from the truth. They're going to die.

 

 _I'm sorry, Donghae_ , Hyukjae thinks, resigned, and then he closes his eyes. He turns his thoughts inward, finding that small spark that rests within his subconscious and fanning the flames until raw energy fizzes on the tips of his fingers.

 

With a shout, Hyukjae thrusts his palms away from his body. A current sweeps through his entire being, digging talons into his mind as it also latches onto the strings of the world around them. And with a sound like an explosion, the great windows of the palace shatter. Shards sail past Hyukjae's outstretched hands and careen toward the line of guards.

 

Hyukjae is the one this time to grab a stunned Donghae by the wrist and race out of the room past their incapacitated enemies. His head pounds, breath coming in labored puffs with the strain that his escape trick had taken upon his body. It had given him a burst of renewed energy, a temporary fix, but at what cost?

 

The time it takes to get up the stairs and out of the dining hall gives Donghae time enough to sort out just what he wants to say to give Hyukjae a piece of his mind. "What were you thinking!?" he yells, voice echoing down the hallway as they run. "You know what playing with your mind does to you! You know it's not worth the cost!"

 

"I'm sorry," Hyukjae says simply. The guilt hits him at full force, and he can't meet Donghae's searching eyes. "It was the only way to get us out of there alive."

 

Donghae doesn't have a response to that, or else what he was about to say is cut off by the sudden shaking of the hallway, the splitting of the stone that seemed so solid underneath their feet. The beams supporting the upper balcony begin to bow just as they make it through the back door at the end of the hallway. Hyukjae’s eyes quickly take note of the ridge they're standing on top of, of its steep sides that extend down to the plateau below. And of the glowing portal that's opened up at that intersection.

 

They're just starting to step out onto the narrow outlet of the ridge when a sharp voice demands, "Stop right there!"

 

A guard captain steps out from the shadows of the palace with more guards than the two of them can possibly fight, and Hyukjae feels any hope he had left slip from his grasp.

 

"Hyukjae...run," Donghae says, deadly serious.

 

"No. There's no way I'm leaving you here to—"

 

Donghae shoves him mid-sentence, and Hyukjae half-falls, half-slides down the side of the ridge toward the stables, too startled to cry out even when he hits the ground.

 

He scrambles toward the rocks again as soon as his head stops spinning, but it's too steep to climb. There's no way up. The sounds of fighting reach his ears from the top, and Hyukjae knows there's no way Donghae can take them all by himself and come away unscathed, and—

 

A sword swings dangerously close to Hyukjae's head, making him stumble backward on unsteady feet.

 

One of the guards had made it down to intercept him, it would seem. The man's face is curled into a brutish grimace. He slashes forward with his sword once more, and Hyukjae jumps back to avoid it without a second thought.

 

Too late, he realizes his mistake. The purple-blue glow of the portal surrounds him, blurring the world with a thin layer of the veil beyond, and the realization of what he's done settles in Hyukjae's mind with a definitive _click_ : he's leaving Donghae without a tether, without a link back to find him.

 

He panics.

 

The portal sucks him in with a surge of white light, and Hyukjae screams Donghae's name as he disappears.

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

 

VI.

 

Darkness.

 

For a moment, Hyukjae thinks the portal misfired, trapping him somewhere between worlds. But the ground is solid underneath his feet, and his eyes are slowly adjusting to the low light.

 

What he sees is a dead world. Shades of gray converge in jagged canyons and bare tree trunks, broken up only by the occasional loose stone. There's nothing here but shadows and ashes.

 

"Donghae!" Hyukjae shouts into the darkness. " _ Donghae _ !"

 

There's no answer, but Hyukjae doesn't know what else to do. He wanders around aimlessly, still calling out Donghae's name to the void. The effort amounts to just as much failure as his first try. Hyukjae is truly alone.

 

Part of him wants to do nothing more than curl up on the ground and let this world do with him what it wishes. But the one instinct that's more powerful than Hyukjae's desire to give in drives him forward: fear. Fear of the shifting shadows and whispers of words that he just can't make out.

 

The barren landscape seems to extend infinitely in every direction. For all he knows, Hyukjae could be wandering in circles or in an infinite line to nowhere. Either way, his stomach churns with a strange feeling, almost like walking on someone's grave. And yes, this world itself is a graveyard, but maybe it's because Hyukjae too is starting to feel like he belongs with whatever buried bones lie beneath the surface. He's never felt this weak and used up.

 

_ You're not going to make it _ , a part of him insists.  _ Better to give up now and come to terms with your future before you head to Limbo.  It's not like you haven't tried, and your body was already destined to die. _

 

_ Yours was, but his wasn't _ . Another voice.  _ If you abandon him to his fate without a fight, what will you think of yourself then? What about the promises you made to each other all that time ago? You know perfectly well that 'stay forever at your side' still includes when it gets difficult. _

 

And that's just it, isn't it? Donghae is depending on him; he can't make it out without help. Every moment Hyukjae spends losing himself to madness needs to instead be spent searching. If Donghae didn't make it to the portal in time...he would have fallen into Limbo, and Hyukjae doesn't know if he could get him out. But surely that's not the case. Donghae has to be alright.

 

He has to be.

 

Hyukjae's newly-cemented resolve must have more pull than he thought. Amongst the ashes and dust at his feet, a new color blooms: a flower made of deep red embers. Hyukjae doesn't dare touch it, only stare at the first sign of hope he's seen here. A whisper sounds from behind him, and he turns to see another ember-flower blooming in the distance. A trail, then. The whispers grow louder as Hyukjae follows it, though their words are indecipherable apart from a single name.

 

Hyukjae has known since the beginning that having Donghae by his side, someone real who he could trust, was the one thing keeping him sane. Being trapped by himself in his own mind, running only on the exhaust fumes of energy that his powers have given him...it's enough to drive anyone to the edge. He doesn't want to know what it will be like when he finally crashes.

 

Something in this world clearly does. The shadows mold and shift into a singular figure over and over again, with one arm outstretched and an expression of grief on his face, until it disintegrates into ash. And still those whispers repeat his name. They taunt Hyukjae with that one-word accusation.

 

Hyukjae claps his hands over his ears as he wanders, keeping his eyes tightly shut and trying to block everything out. But it's hard to keep out something that simultaneously feels like it's creeping up on him from the shadows and coming from inside his own head.

 

One step more, and Hyukjae falls.

 

He lands at the bottom of a previously unseen ravine, though something had cushioned his fall. He touches the ground beneath his legs, and the hand comes away with a black, sticky sludge that fuses to his skin. A feeling of dread stirs within Hyukjae's chest.

 

Right on time, the ground sags. The sludge starts to pull him under like quicksand, paralyzing the limbs that it engulfs. Hyukjae's efforts to kick his legs back to the surface are to no avail. Instead, he claws at dry ground until his nails are bloody, pain muted beneath the terror of being lost beneath the surface.

 

When he finally pulls himself out, the sludge still clings to his body. A thick rivulet runs down into his right eye and half-blinds him, and his limbs are heavy with the extra weight of their parasitic coating. But Hyukjae can make out another ember-flower. He knows what he needs to do.

 

He runs. He runs as fast as he can, no matter how hard the sludge makes it for him to move - almost as if he's in slow motion. The whispers grow louder still, as do the illusions that dance on the edge of Hyukjae's vision. But the trail of ember-flowers rewards his struggle with the familiar glow of a portal that has never looked so inviting.

 

Sludge flows into his other eye just as the full portal comes into view. Hyukjae's world is nothing but darkness and the sound of his own choppy breathing as he blindly jumps through.

 

 

VII.

 

The first thing Hyukjae notices is that his eyesight is restored.

 

His body is free of the horror that had plagued it just moments ago, and though his clothes are torn and tattered, he can't find it in his heart to complain. He's still in one piece.

 

Hyukjae stands in place for a few minutes longer, collecting himself once again. Only when his breathing has returned to normal does he look up and take in the new world.

 

An overcast sky hangs low over the giant hedge that towers before him, obscuring any view of the area save for the thick fog collecting near the ground. The hedge is more spiked brambles and the memory of leaves than true greenery. But something about it draws Hyukjae in, wills him to walk along its path. He realizes the reason for the pull only when it disappears. The hedge ends, revealing a path deeper into the world, and Hyukjae all at once knows exactly what situation he's ended up in.

 

It's a giant maze.

 

_ You can do this, Hyukjae. No running, no jumping, no fighting. Just you and your brain. _

 

The words are meant to calm him, but one look at the sky tells Hyukjae that it's already early evening and slipping quickly into night. His time is dwindling fast. And who's to say that his mind is even close to what it was when he first dove into his subconscious? That thought troubles him to no end as he steps between the first set of hedges.

 

For a time, Hyukjae does his best to figure out the maze's secrets. He scouts path after path, mentally mapping his trail for lack of something to leave behind as a landmark. But the sky grows darker, and Hyukjae grows more lost, no closer to his goal. The lack of progress and his increasing frustration renders his mental map all but useless.

 

A rustling sounds from one of the hedges, loud enough that Hyukjae is sure it can't be the wind. He turns just in time to see vines twist outward from the wall of green, growing thorns and blossoms alike as they weave together into the shape of a wolf. When they retreat, leaving their creation frozen in place, the wolf’s eyes blaze to life with an unnatural fire.

 

Hyukjae releases the breath he was holding, and the wolf lunges toward his throat.

 

Howls not of the natural world sound at Hyukjae's back as he sprints blindly through the maze. They issue not just from the creature he'd seen, but from others that peel themselves out of the hedges and jump directly into the chase. It's the only sound louder than Hyukjae's own breathing, which catches in his throat as often as he nearly trips over his own feet. He's in no state to run. But what choice does he have?

 

The next stumble costs him. A large wolf collides with him, covered in lilies and brambles, and Hyukjae falls to the ground. Hands instinctively reach out to stop his attacker, but there's no reasoning with beasts. Fear leaks through Hyukjae's skin like a poison. Before he realizes his mind's intentions, he's lashing out with the same powers that had cost him Donghae's trust.

 

A bolt of energy hits the wolf square in the chest, sending it flying in some other direction. But Hyukjae hardly sees it start to disappear before a violent vision brings him to his knees. Flashes of sensations and colors intrude upon his senses, forming scattered images that show him a way forward. It would seem opening himself up to his mind had allowed it to intervene on his behalf. But Hyukjae didn't want it like this, not when it leaves him feeling violated to his core.

 

He grips his head in his hands, body catching up to the sudden shock of pain. A series of labored gasps escape his lips. But he can hear his pursuers gaining ground, bringing those howls closer, and his body's instincts won't allow him to stay frozen here any longer.

 

So he stumbles onward. Hyukjae's body is in as fragile a state as his mind, but he can still see bits and pieces of that vision behind his eyelids, showing him the path to freedom.

 

_ You shouldn't know it _ , a voice chastises him even now.  _ It wasn't worth it. If he knew, what would he say? What would his face look like, heavy with all that disappointment? _

 

But none of that will matter if Hyukjae doesn't make it out of here, if he can't figure out how to find Donghae and rescue him.

 

The vision hadn't lied; Hyukjae finds the clearing at the center of the maze. A portal is already open, which he finds strange until the ground just noticeably tilts under his feet. Somewhere in the distance, a hedge crashes to the ground, bringing its neighbors along to their final rest. Time is already running short.

 

Still, the destruction is nothing compared to the grotesque behemoth that awaits him there. Tree roots have warped together to form a creature that sends shivers down Hyukjae's spine, fused together with clumps of dirt and ivy. It has no eyes. Only a wide, gaping maw that lets out a roar meant for the deepest circles of Hell.

 

The beast lunges at Hyukjae, leaving him no time for regret before he lashes out with a cry of terror and resistance. Shrieks issue from that same maw as the beast is repelled to somewhere far deeper within the collapsing maze. And Hyukjae is left to crumple to the ground, body spasming out of his control for a few long moments as it struggles to take in the pain he's just forced upon it.

 

There's something singing to him from nearby. Hyukjae turns his head, uncurling his fingers from the dirt, and what he sees nearly stops his heart. A shining orb hovers just feet away from him, above the ground where the beast was standing guard. The world core.

 

Hyukjae reaches out for it, his body too weak to move. He's never been this close, not since the ocean vents had ripped that chance away from him. He can almost touch it if he stretches just a bit further, angles his shoulder down toward the ground, but...

 

But he can't take it.

 

There are images swimming behind Hyukjae's eyelids, traces from his vision that stay his hand. They show him exactly what will happen if he touches that orb. He'll return to his body, free of the creeping virus that had threatened it. He'll be able to do with his life whatever he wishes, repay Jungsoo for giving him a fighting chance. And Donghae will still be here. If Hyukjae leaves alone, he's dooming his other half to wander the planes of his mind for eternity, and Hyukjae knows himself well enough to realize that's something he can never do.

 

He can only lie on the ground with fingertips inches away from his key to freedom, devastation overwhelming him.

 

A hedge bordering the clearing topples forward. Its crest comes dangerously close to where Hyukjae is splayed out in the dirt, stirring the survival instinct that's kept him going all this time. Hyukjae musters up what remnants of strength he has left to stagger to his feet and toward the portal on the opposite side of the clearing.

 

With Donghae's name on his lips, he steps into the light.

 

 

VIII.

 

Hyukjae opens his eyes to a dimly-lit room, illuminated only by candles that line the walls. The soft glow also serves a more sinister purpose, it would seem, for the shadows cast by the weapons hanging above them create a chilling image.

 

And Hyukjae...Hyukjae is done with all of this.

 

A sword is placed in his hands, a gift that he has no choice but to accept, and an assistant finishes dressing him in a full-body black uniform before he can wonder if he should have refused.

 

"You have your mission," the man in front of him says sharply. "Find where the rival assassin group is hiding and eliminate their rising star. Bring me his head to collect your payment."

 

Hyukjae wonders why they're giving him such a task when he can hardly stand on his own two feet. But no one seems to notice or care, nor about his lack of response to the task he's been given. So be it. If it's meant to happen, it will. That's the way these things always go.

 

Hyukjae leaves the hideout without another word. The moment he steps outside, he's immediately greeted with a mild sandstorm, one that stings his uncovered hands and eyes. A desert.

 

But not an uninhabited wasteland, not by a long shot. The city in front of him is striking, with buildings of all shapes and sizes carved into giant, hollowed-out mushrooms. Some of them have grown together, some have sprouted new roots, some have aged and warped. The city is a colony of living architecture in the midst of this sandy wilderness.

 

A civilian catches Hyukjae's eye, looking fearful, and he immediately moves into the darker recesses of the city. Not because of any loyalty to those mysterious assassins and their mission, but because he doesn't have the capacity to deal with another's presence right now. He needs to get away.

 

Sticking to the shadows, Hyukjae limps across town, heading for somewhere he can rest. The highest vantage point should take him the furthest away from the rest of the conjured 'living' things here, the closest to safety that he can truly get here.

 

Such a place isn't difficult to pinpoint: a massive building sits in the center of the city where Hyukjae assumes the elite pull their strings from within. It's easy enough for him to sneak into a side entrance and make his way up to the roof access.

 

The city is quieter from this height. Hyukjae looks out on it as he rests at the edge of the railing, already seeing the sandstorm starting to pick up. That must be it, then: the collapse. Amazing that he's still alive when worlds can now only hold on for this long.

 

There are eyes on his back.

 

Hyukjae turns around to confront the newcomer, and finds another assassin dressed in a bright red imitation of Hyukjae's own uniform. An identical facemask covers all but the assassin's eyes, which stare him down with a cold, unreadable expression. The thought hardly leaves Hyukjae's mind before three other men of this assassin's same colors appear from the shadows to stand at his side.

 

A flash of fear permeates the apathy that's taken over Hyukjae's insides. He refuses to die now, not when he's come so far.

 

_ Not when there's someone I have to protect. _

 

Hyukjae moves before he can second-guess himself. He swings his sword at the assassin with unsteady arms, but the clash doesn't last long. His weakness is nothing compared to the attacker's practiced ability. Try as he might, he finds himself pushed back to the edge of the railing.

 

A leg sweeps out to hit the backs of Hyukjae's knees, and he's knocked off his feet. He can feel the hood of his uniform fly back at the same instant his sword goes skidding away, exposing the sheer horror on his face at suddenly seeing how the end of his life will play out.

 

So this is it. Hyukjae faces his doom with a terrified shaking, curling up in an attempt to shield himself from the inevitable. He still doesn't know what happens when he dies here, does he? A normal death, like in the real world? Damnation? Just a vast nothingness? The thought of any of those is...no, he can't do this.

 

"Don't kill me!" Hyukjae begs. It comes out like a whisper, the muscles in his throat contracting at the fear that runs through his veins. "Please, I'll do anything you ask. Anything. Just don't....don't kill me. I yield."

 

"...Hyukjae?"

 

Hyukjae slowly raises his face from behind his arms, looks up from where he's curled in on himself, and he sees a face that's as comforting and familiar as the voice behind it. The knotted tangle of surprise and relief suddenly shoved into his chest nearly makes him burst in tears.

 

"Are you alright?" Donghae asks, moving closer. He looks like he wants to touch Hyukjae's face just to make sure he's real, but the three assassins in the background immediately draw their swords.

 

"Don't break the contract," one of them says coldly.

 

The growing hostility drives Hyukjae to his feet, struggle as he may to stand up straight. But the moment he finds his footing, he’s nearly knocked back down to the ground.

 

The collapse is accelerating. Growing twisters descend on the landscape, burying any view of the buildings beneath in a coffin of sand. But one landmark is visible even in the chaos: a portal that rips open near the ground over the side of the building. If they jump, they can probably make it, but...

 

Donghae is fighting the other assassins, all of them having turned on him the instant he refused to plunge his sword through Hyukjae's chest. He needs help, someone to intervene on his behalf, and Hyukjae is happy to provide just that.

 

This time, he's not leaving without his other half.

 

In a flash, he darts to take Donghae's arm and yank him out of the fight, letting him go so they can sprint to the building's edge.

 

"We have to jump!" Hyukjae calls to him. "There's no time left to get down to the portal!"

 

Just as Hyukjae's feet are about to leave the edge, he hears a yell. He turns back to see Donghae pinned to the ground by another assassin, reaching out for Hyukjae with a desperate ferocity.

 

If Hyukjae doesn't jump now, it's over.

 

He looks at the portal longingly one last time, angry tears threatening to spill over, and turns away. "Hold on!" he yells, running back to where Donghae is struggling.

 

With more strength than he knew he possessed, Hyukjae tackles the assassin. The man doesn't let go, not entirely, but neither does Hyukjae. He refuses to let his grip on Donghae slip as the world falls apart. Not as the rooftop crumbles into pieces, not as the sand blinds him to everything but Donghae's face, not as they fall into darkness.

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

 

 

IX.

 

Sand.

 

Heaps of it shift underneath Hyukjae's still form as he lies face-down on the ground. Through the slits of his tired eyes, all he can make out is more. Waves gently lap against his legs, and his breathing comes as slowly as the tide, body still enough to nearly become one with the shore.

 

For a moment, Hyukjae thinks he's dead. The idea makes some combination of panic and twisted relief bloom in his chest. But the deep ache that goes down to his bones tells him otherwise, anchors him to the world of the living. He rolls his head to the side and finally sees the pastel pinks and blues that color the beach he's washed up on. Jungsoo had told him of this place, in clipped, worried sentences soon before Hyukjae had gone under.

 

_Limbo._

 

The world below all levels of consciousness, the root of all memories and fears, the place of infinite possibilities. And most importantly, the one place in Hyukjae's mind from which there was no escape. He lies on the sand with resigned exhaustion, letting the waves hit him for a time. If this is going to be his prison, he'll have plenty of time to explore the rest of it when he can actually stand on his own two feet. Exploring...wasn't there something he was looking for? Or maybe not something, but some—

 

_Donghae._

 

As quickly as the thought hits him, the faint sound of that achingly familiar voice calls his name from further up the shore.

 

"Hold on!" the voice calls again, and Hyukjae struggles to his knees, crawling toward the sound until his body collapses back onto the sand.

 

Donghae is there to catch him. Hyukjae's body has no resistance to offer as the other man collects him in his arms and holds him close. And while Hyukjae might be worse off than his body can physically register, he has never felt more complete than he does right now.

 

"Everything's going to be okay," Donghae tells him, cradling Hyukjae's head in his hands with a care that betrays just how worried he was. "Can I take you inland? I'll find us a place to rest and regroup."

 

Hyukjae can only give him the slightest nod, limbs heavy as lead. It feels like at any moment the muscles and tendons holding his body together will give out entirely. When Donghae picks him up, it's almost like he's carrying a doll. Hyukjae is sure his body is as lifeless and frail as it could be while he was still alive and breathing.

 

They journey away from the water's edge, and Hyukjae takes in the strange scenery of Limbo's shores: worn, run-down buildings dot the otherwise barren landscape, their mystery only amplified by the silence that hangs over them. It's hard to tell if that silence makes it more peaceful or threatening.

 

Jungsoo's shared knowledge of this place comes flooding back to Hyukjae at the sight of the ruins. The other man's research on the human mindscape wasn't complete, but he did know some things for certain: Limbo was the core of one’s imagination. During childhood, when that connection was the strongest, one could build in this place to their heart's desire, lose themselves for hours on end. But Hyukjae’s own spark of youthful innocence is long gone. The grand creations he had built here in Limbo have gone to ruin, shadows of their original splendor.

 

Donghae ends their search at a building far from the coast, one that still has a roof and most of its supports. The interior leaves something to be desired with its splintered wood and crumbling walls, but it's still shelter. Hyukjae feels a great wave of relief crash over him when Donghae lays him on the frayed remains of what used to be a mattress. Finally, he can give in.

 

"I'll watch over you," Donghae tells him. "Get some rest, for however long you need. Your body needs to recover."

 

Hyukjae thanks him in a whisper that only half leaves his lips before he’s out like a light, mind drifting somewhere on a different faraway shore.

 

~*~

 

Hyukjae sleeps for days straight, though the exact number escapes him. Brief flashes of consciousness show Donghae either sitting at his side or coming back from the outside world. Scouting, maybe, or else just satisfying his own curiosity. Hyukjae can't say. This dreamless state of sleep within his own mind is strange enough without worrying about what the other man has been up to. But it still heals him, nursing his broken body back to health better than any other cure. How long has he craved this freedom, to simply sleep?

 

On the final day, Hyukjae wakes up feeling...not perfect, but at least somewhat like himself again.

 

"Donghae..." he says softly, and the other man is at his side in an instant, pulling him into an embrace. Hyukjae rests his head in the crook of his neck, breathing him in as he finds his center again. The feeling of familiarity is an anchor in the midst of such a huge, terrifying unknown.

 

"Where were you?" Hyukjae asks when he pulls back. His curiosity gets the question out before he can stop it.

 

A look of tempered fear flashes on Donghae's face. "Nowhere pleasant," he says before his expression softens. "But that doesn't matter now. I found you. You found me. And no matter what happens next, at least we'll get through it together."

 

Hyukjae wants so badly to lose himself to the sentiment, but he's not blind. He has no illusions as to their situation.

 

"Donghae...we're in Limbo. There’s nothing to get through, because there's no way out."

 

"No _known_ way. I'll search the area and see if I can find some clue to help us."

 

"I think we have to start facing that we're trapped here for—"

 

"For as long as it takes to get out. We'd better get started now."

 

At Hyukjae's mournful expression, Donghae places two firm hands on his shoulders. "I'm not giving up, Hyukjae," he says. "And neither are you. We agreed at the beginning of this whole thing that nothing would stand in our way. Limbo is just another obstacle to overcome. Alright?"

 

"...Alright." It's hard not to be drawn to Donghae's optimism, regardless of how genuine it actually is. "What's our plan?"

 

"I'm going to keep scouting out the town, while you make sure you're fully recovered. Next time, we can go searching together if you're up for it. You okay with staying here by yourself?"

 

"I think I'll manage," Hyukjae says with a sarcasm that masks his secret enjoyment of being taken care of.

 

This time, Donghae's smile reaches his eyes. "If you don't want to be babied, then stop making me worry about you." He plants a kiss on the other man's cheek before he can complain, out the door in another heartbeat.

 

"Come back safely!" Hyukjae calls, and the words of the reply he gets are lost to Limbo's timeless air.

 

The sound of Donghae's footsteps soon disappears into the distance. Despite what he'd been told, sitting around seems useless in comparison to exploring this new world, so Hyukjae takes it upon himself to do the same. He takes in the crumbling house, now eerily empty and silent.

 

Debris crunches underneath his feet as he walks around the small space, looking closer at torn curtains and rotting sections of the floor. There's nothing here so far that stands out. But Hyukjae can't help but be drawn further in, up the rickety stairs in the back.

 

A few steps in the middle creak violently, and for a fleeting moment Hyukjae thinks he might fall through. But they somehow hold together and grant him access to the second floor.

 

Visually, the upstairs is no different than the level below. Multiple rooms converge with ruined walls, and there's still no furniture to speak of. But the atmosphere has shifted, giving Hyukjae the feeling of standing on the edge of some unknown cliff. There must be something here that will give him the final push. It seems a fruitless search, up until he makes it to the furthest room and sees a full-length mirror hanging on the wall, in strangely pristine condition compared to the rest of the house.

 

Hyukjae runs his fingers around the edge, and they come away without dust. His reflection stares back at him with an expression that's equally as confused as he feels.

 

 _What is it about this mirror?_ Hyukjae wonders. _It shouldn't feel so out of place, but.._

 

His fingertips graze the surface of the glass, and the mirror suddenly goes black.

 

Hyukjae retracts his hand just as quickly as the darkness disappears, replaced with a gray fog that pulsates in its place. A figure slowly materializes from the fog, its silhouette revealing it to be a far cry from Hyukjae's own reflection.

 

"Impossible," Hyukjae breathes out.

 

The figure opens its eyes at the words, and Hyukjae resists the urge to jump back at seeing the same pair of familiar eyes that had left him just minutes ago.

 

"Hyukjae, is that you?" Donghae asks from behind the glass, looking shell-shocked. "You can see me?"

 

"Yes, I..." The words stick in Hyukjae's throat.

 

_What is this? Did he get trapped here after leaving? Is it really even him?_

 

"I don't know what's going on," Donghae admits. "I'm in some strange place, which I assumed was going to be Limbo, but you're not here. I looked for you, staying in this building between searches, and that's when I found the mirror." Donghae's voice falters. "I saw you, but you couldn't see me. Even when I yelled at you for hours, you never noticed. Until now."

 

"So, what? You're in some sort of parallel Limbo?"

 

"Your guess is as good as mine. I don't see how I could end up anywhere else since we both fell into the collapse."

 

"But...that can't be it." Hyukjae's head spins. "I kept physical contact with you during the collapse. I've seen you, talked to you, watched you walk out the door. It's impossible for you to be two places in my mind at once."

 

A look of alarm flashes on Donghae's face. "And what has this 'other' me been talking to you about?"

 

"He's been off exploring, trying to help us find a way out of here and back to—"

 

"NO!"

 

Hyukjae flinches at the sudden sound, and Donghae looks apologetic.

 

"Sorry, I didn't mean to yell. But didn't Jungsoo tell you before we left? If you leave Limbo without me, this part of my consciousness will stay trapped here. I'll be comatose in the real world until my body finally gives out."

 

"No? He never mentioned a way out of Limbo, much less the possibility of leaving you behind.”

 

"He must have," Donghae insists. "Or at least you must have realized by now that leaving by yourself through the world core would cause the same thing. Limbo's rule isn't any different."

 

Hyukjae is silent, gears turning in his head at an alarming speed.

 

"But Donghae would never..."

 

"Hyukjae, _I'm_ Donghae. I don't know what sort of thing your mind conjured up to trick you, but you can't trust it. Please."

 

There are tears behind that plea, visibly pricking at the corners of the other man's eyes, and it punches Hyukjae in the gut just how critical this is for both of them. There is some stranger with him pretending to be Donghae, there is a very real chance he could end up leaving the real one trapped here forever by trying to save him. And Hyukjae has no idea how to proceed.

 

"Then what am I supposed to—"

 

A door closes downstairs, startling him silent, and Donghae's eyes fill with fear.

 

"He's back. Don't let on that you know who he is, and don't let him make you leave. I believe in you."

 

"What are you looking at?"

 

Hyukjae turns around so fast that he nearly falls over. He sees Donghae —in the flesh, not the glass— standing before him with one eyebrow raised in confusion, and he can't find the words to say.

 

"Umm, I just—"

 

Hyukjae turns to look at the mirror once more, but it shows only his reflection. There's no trace of the other Donghae that he'd spoken to just moments before.

 

"I was...just exploring the building," he says, finally regaining some of his bearings. "But all I found on this floor was the empty rooms and this mirror. Nothing that can help."

 

Donghae nods, eyes flickering around the room before he focuses in again on Hyukjae, eyebrows creasing together.

 

"Hey, are you okay? You look a little pale."

 

"Just tired," Hyukjae assures him. A blatant lie.

 

"Alright, as long as you're not feeling any worse." Donghae perks up. "At least I have exciting news for you: I think I found the road to the inner part of Limbo, more complex than the fringes we're on now. If there's any way to leave, that's where we'll find out about it."

 

_Leaving...that's a very strong 'if', isn't it?_

 

Hyukjae ignores the tiny voice in his head pointing out that this is exactly what the Donghae in the mirror had warned him about.

 

"Let's go back downstairs and you can tell me what you found," he says, nearly pushing the other man down the stairs.

 

Donghae concedes with a smile, and Hyukjae throws one last look over his shoulder at the mirror as they leave, a faint shiver running down his spine. His unfinished question from before still rings in his head.

 

_What am I supposed to do now?_

 

~*~

 

For the rest of the night, Hyukjae studies Donghae carefully, turning the words from before over and over in his head and feeling torn. He doesn't know what to think. The Donghae before him doesn't seem malicious, but...those words won't leave his head. They beat against his skull even as he lays down in the tattered mattress may-or-may-not-be Donghae has tried to patch up for them tonight. What is the truth? And how is Hyukjae supposed to go about figuring it out?

 

In the midst of that soul-searching, the daily exploration of Limbo continues. Donghae fans out further than Hyukjae does, and although Hyukjae does do some of the exploring the other man intends for him, he often finds himself skipping out on it to talk with the Donghae in the mirror, whose words make more and more sense. Still, it takes days for him to finally voice his concerns.

 

"You've been predicting his movements exactly," Hyukjae admits. "Where he wants to search, what he wants me to cover, even how he tries to keep me from feeling miserable about this whole situation. I think...I'm sure that he's not what he pretends to be. I'm sorry for doubting you."

 

"Thank you," Donghae tells him sincerely before his voice turns grave. "And have you gotten any closer to leaving?"

 

"I don't think so. There's not much here to go on as far as a way out. But this facade of me pretending not to know anything can only go on for so long. How am I supposed to get to _you_?"

 

Donghae bites his lip, visibly unsure. "I don't want you to put yourself in danger."

 

"I'm willing to do anything," Hyukjae insists.

 

"Then hear me out. The only bridge we know between worlds is you, which only makes sense considering where we are. We're just missing a way to manipulate and cross that bridge. And the only times you've manipulated a world have been when..." He hesitates. "Whenever you used your powers."

 

"But you hate when I use my powers."

 

"You remember the first time you discovered them, don't you? You only wanted to down a tree to use as a path across that river, but ended up taking down half the forest and nearly killing me in the process. I don't have anything against your powers themselves, but that doesn't change that they're dangerous in their outcome and even more dangerous for you to use."

 

The memory stirs familiar sour feelings in Hyukjae's chest, strengthening the dread he's tried to suppress about the plan they'll be forced to come up with.

 

"And despite all that," he says, "you think it's the only way."

 

"I wouldn't bring it up if I thought there was another option. But your powers seem to be the only way to get between worlds."

 

"Maybe I could..." Hyukjae racks his brain for _anything_ . "If I take the time to practice, maybe I could open up a portal between Limbos just like the ones used between other worlds. I could pull you through without _him_ finding out, and then—"

 

"Hyukjae?"

 

The mirror returns to its regular sheen in a heartbeat, and Hyukjae turns to see Donghae standing in the doorway much like he had the first time, only much more confused.

 

"Who were you talking to?" Donghae asks him.

 

"Myself," Hyukjae lies, and he doesn't miss the flash of hurt on Donghae's face.

 

"Well, I still haven't found anything useful," Donghae says, switching topics. "But I'll keep looking. You?"

 

"Still nothing." Another lie.

 

Donghae looks like he wants to say something further, but Hyukjae isn't interested in avoiding more questions. He doesn't press the other man to speak.

 

They go to sleep that night in silence.

 

~*~

 

They move further into Limbo the next day, out of the old shelter and into a new one that's in the same state of ruin. Hyukjae is concerned about losing his only link to Donghae on the other side, but he needn't have worried. A replica of the mirror appears in the upstairs of this new abode. He can still reassure Donghae that his copy isn't going to force them to leave, not on his watch.

 

Hyukjae's practice with his powers goes better than expected. He finds that using them while in Limbo doesn't take as large a toll on him compared to other worlds, maybe because he's so far deep within his own consciousness. Excessive use will fatigue him, but he isn't having violent knee-jerk reactions like before. It's a good thing, too; he has to be ready. Every free moment needs to be spent honing his abilities if Hyukjae wants a shot at pulling his mission off successfully.

 

About a week in, he's nearly caught. Donghae finds him when he's using his mind to break off tree branches behind the house, and Hyukjae barely has enough time to drop them.

 

"What are you doing outside?"

 

"Sightseeing. Just needed a while to take it all in."

 

This time, Donghae clearly isn't having it. "Tell me why you don't trust me anymore," he demands. "We used to tell each other anything. Was it something I said? Something I did?"

 

_You know what? Forget it. I'm sick of playing this game. What's the worst he can do?_

 

"I _can't_ trust you," Hyukjae admits. "Because I know what you are: an illusion. The real Donghae is trapped in another Limbo, only able to talk to me through mirrors. We watch you, we plan how I'm going to get him out, and we both know your secret. So don't talk to me about _trust_."

 

Donghae doesn't try to mask the hurt on his face. "I can understand why you'd be confused, but...listen, ten years ago, we met after you broke your foot trying to climb the tree in my front yard. Four years later, you kissed me on the Ferris wheel at the carnival and told me you loved me. Your lips still tasted like cotton candy. When I teased you about it, you hit me, but we went back every summer until it closed down. Every memory we have together is still with me."

 

"I'm sorry." Hyukjae turns away, the memory hitting too close to home. "But we're inside my head. Of course you'd remember everything I do. This is exactly how he predicted you'd react if I ever told you."

 

"And have you considered," Donghae asks, voice struggling to remain steady, "that 'Donghae' only knows these things because you know me well enough to predict that? We are, as you said, in your head."

 

"Don't try to trick me!" Hyukjae snaps, but the words bother him, settling uncomfortably in his stomach.

 

"Hyukjae, please, let's talk this out. I'm not trying to trick you into anything; if you'd just—"

 

Hyukjae has stopped listening, turning his back entirely until the other man finally gives up. Donghae leaves him alone with the silence, louder now more than ever before.

 

The following day, Donghae moves them to a new shelter, one with a single floor and no mirrors in sight. He claims they needed to move closer to the middle of the ruined city, but Hyukjae has no illusions about his true intentions. Still, he plays along. He lays low for days, planning and practicing in secret, until he finally feels ready. When they retire for the day, drawing the curtains to block the endless sunlight, he evens out his breathing and pretends to drift off to sleep. Then he swings his feet off of the mattress and gingerly stands, seeing Donghae shift from the sudden disappearance of warmth.

 

Hyukjae hovers by their bedside, listening for any indication that he's been heard, but the only sound is Donghae's steady breathing.

 

It's time.

 

With silent footfalls, Hyukjae slips out of the building. He doesn't have a destination in mind, but he walks on until the abandoned house is no longer visible on the horizon. It won't do to be anywhere near that illusion of Donghae when he finally rescues the real one. The clearing up ahead seems an ideal place to break free from this game of cat and mouse.

 

If he can harness his powers correctly, Hyukjae should be able to rip through the veil to the Limbo on the other side. After all, that's all a portal is, isn't it? The chaos of the world tearing through that boundary just as he plans to. Either the portal should allow Donghae to jump through, or Hyukjae will go and bring him here himself. He doesn't have the luxury of failure.

 

_Here goes nothing._

 

Hyukjae stands very still, closing his eyes to concentrate fully on the task ahead. His focus is razor-sharp, as concentrated as the power he gathers to rip through the void. It thrums through his body, ready to follow his every command.

 

This is Hyukjae's mind. Here, he is the master of all that transpires, and Limbo itself will bend to his will or fall apart resisting.

 

With a shout, he lets the energy loose upon the world. Hyukjae's powers aren't a shield this time; they're a weapon. The air shimmers with the sheer amount of power that he expels from his body.

 

But something isn't right.

 

Instead of a portal opening up, Hyukjae feels the energy overtake him. He falls to his knees as it slips from his control, whipping around him in a steadily growing hurricane.

 

The sun extinguishes itself without warning, plunging Limbo into darkness. It makes the chaos even more frightening, not being able to see what destruction the furious wind wreaks on the surrounding landscape. When the ground shudders and bucks underneath his feet, Hyukjae can't tell what direction he's stumbling. And yet power still flows from his mind with an unstoppable ferocity, plunging him deeper into the nightmare.

 

Hyukjae's cries are lost to the wind. A string of sensations hits him with brutish ferocity: the sound of cracking glass, temperatures dropping to arctic conditions, twisted laughter playing on repeat. And in front of his eyes, with a black void exuding from its center, stands the mirror that he's come to know by heart. There are no illusions surrounding its intentions.

 

A force far greater than Hyukjae's own will pulls him toward the void, sucking him into some unknown Hell. And Hyukjae finally realizes his mistake.

 

The Donghae in the reflection was never real. There was never another Limbo. And his powers were never meant to be used like this, to destroy a world he himself had created. This corruption of their intentions pulls him into an insanity beyond Limbo, to an end worse than death. All because he couldn't tell the truth from the illusion.

 

Hyukjae curses his stupidity as fiercely as he struggles against the pull, fingers digging desperately into the dirt even when it amounts to naught. The distance between him and the void grows ever smaller.

 

_I'm such an idiot. If I had just...oh, god, Donghae I'm so—_

 

Suddenly there are arms locked around his waist, yanking him away.

 

"This isn't how it ends, Hyukjae!" Donghae shouts. "Not when we've come so far! Fight it!"

 

The words, coupled with the shock of the other man's appearance, ground some part Hyukjae back in Limbo's relative reality. He channels his focus on them, blocking out the surrounding chaos.

 

_I'm still in control. These powers still stem from me, from my mind. I only need to pull up the roots._

 

Hyukjae grasps at the threads projecting from his influence. He feels along their surface to the source, yanks them back into that place inside himself that keeps them contained. The energy pushes back at him with a high-pitched screech. But Hyukjae refuses to let go, packs and compartmentalizes it down until it's once again the faintest spark of intention. Its connection to the outside world is severed in one great push.

 

All sound cuts out. The whirlwind disappears into the air. Limbo is back to an overcast early morning, sun shining as if nothing had disturbed its peace. And Donghae is still holding him, shielding Hyukjae from a fate that could have destroyed them both.

 

_Donghae..._

 

The thought is cut off by a shock that runs through his insides, and Hyukjae feels himself spasm in bursts of pain. He may have stopped himself from destroying his own mind, but his body won't forgive him so easily for the damage.

 

The arms around him lock even tighter in place. Hyukjae thinks only of their warmth as his spasms slowly fade into almost imperceptible shaking. Finally, he can breathe again.

 

"Are you okay?" Donghae asks him softly, and Hyukjae's heart breaks at the thought of ever mistrusting the words to come from those lips.

 

"I don't know," he says honestly. "If you hadn't gotten here in time..." His voice drops to a whisper, ashamed. "How did you know to come find me? Or where I was?"

 

"After everything you told me, after I'd seen how far the other me had gotten in your head, I had a feeling you'd be driven to do something rash. So I kept a careful eye on you, wanted to make sure you wouldn't put yourself in danger." Donghae holds onto him tighter still. "I'll always be here to protect you."

 

The words wrap Hyukjae in their warmth. He leans back into the embrace for a long moment, taking deep breaths and absorbing himself in the world that he almost inadvertently destroyed.

 

He's about to open his mouth to speak when a host of unprompted colors and sensations flash before his eyes. It's not violent, not like the crippling visions from before, but still makes him gasp and jerk back. Images mix together in a blend of confusing impressions, making no sense to Hyukjae's floundering senses. He searches for something in the flashes that he can grasp to understand. And when that image sticks, he finally pieces them together in one great epiphany.

 

"Oh," Hyukjae says simply. The implications of this newfound knowledge hit him like a brick.

 

With that one word, Limbo sucks him back into its reality. He turns around in the embrace he's held in, facing the other man’s concerned face.

 

"Donghae," he says in wonder, "There _is_ a way out. Trying to rip open the veil wasn't the answer, but it showed me something even Jungsoo didn’t know."

 

He grips Donghae's shoulders with new determination settling into his bones, speaking aloud the two sentences that change everything.

 

"The rules here might be different, but we're not entirely cut off from the rest of my mind. If I'm understanding my vision correctly...Limbo has a world core."

 

~*~

 

They set off immediately on their journey, Hyukjae insisting that getting to the core is far more important than letting him rest. His mistake nearly cost them both of their lives; it won't cost them valuable time now. A full understanding of his new revelation is still beyond him, but Hyukjae doesn't mind not knowing all the answers. He's more than happy to just have a way out.

 

That still doesn't stop the two of them from theorizing. He and Donghae throw ideas back and forth as they traverse Limbo's shifting landscape, if only to fill the air with something other than silence. Maybe they've been chasing the same world core this whole time, just not quickly enough to reach it each time. Maybe with Hyukjae's mind so weakened from before, the veil in Limbo keeping the core hidden and inaccessible is weak enough for them to reach it. Or maybe this is all just misguided speculation.

 

In any case, they should be able to get to it now without fear of a collapse...as long as they can reach the spot in Hyukjae's mind before he and this place are lost entirely. Hyukjae's earlier fatigue coupled with the strain of the hurricane has taken a toll. If they make good time, they'll be free. But they have to keep moving.

 

On the first day, they make it beyond all traces of old buildings. Limbo has a tendency to fade from one environment to another without warning, and this time isn't an exception. Their path gives way to rolling plains, smattered with meadows of green grass and prairie flowers. The eternal daylight keeps it beautiful up until the moment they close their eyes to rest. Limbo is still unthinkably vast, still walking that strange line between peaceful and vaguely threatening. Or maybe they've been running for too long to tell the difference.

 

On the third day, trekking through mountain valley cliffs, they come across a roaring waterfall, one that pours into a river sparkling with an almost supernatural reflection of the sunlight. The air is clear, the water is heavenly going down their throats, and they have to stop and stare at the sheer amount of beauty in front of them. It's a shared moment that doesn't leave Hyukjae's mind even for the rest of the journey.

 

On the sixth day, they reach a series of floating stone islands, suspended above the mountains with bridges of twisting vines binding them to each other. Clouds float beneath their feet as they carefully navigate along each bridge. Hyukjae is just glad they're there to block his view of the ground below, or else the sheer height of the drop would have paralyzed him.

 

At last, they reach journey's end. The realization comes on very suddenly. One moment, they're wandering in the general direction of Hyukjae's vision, and the next moment Hyukjae is hit with just _how_ familiar the landscape is. The connections come together like fireworks, and it makes the mountain overlook all the more beautiful. But one problem overshadows that revelation.

 

There's no world core to speak of.

 

"Is...this the exact place you saw?" Donghae asks, and Hyukjae feels his heart sink down to his feet.

 

 _Calm down, there must be something more_ . _The vision can't have led you wrong. Even if it did only happen because of..._

 

"That's it. I have to use my powers to reveal the core. It's how I saw the path here in the first place, isn't it?"

 

"I don't think—" Donghae starts to protest, but when he sees Hyukjae's confidence, he relents. "If you're sure," he says seriously.

 

He is. Hyukjae clasps Donghae's hand one more time, and then he enters his element. He channels the energy inside himself much like before, fighting to rip open the veil against its steadfast resistance. Just as much focus goes into keeping those powers in check, preventing them ripping control from his hands. Hyukjae's body shakes from the effort. With one great heave, it gives out entirely.

 

Limbo destabilizes in an instant. The natural laws of the world don't seem to fit together any longer, both physical and otherwise. The ground shakes, mountains form and collapse, and the sheer scale of destruction eclipses anything Hyukjae has ever seen. But a portal has opened up off the edge of the newly-formed cliff where they're standing. This plan of theirs might have actually worked.

 

Hyukjae collapses, spent, but Donghae grabs him before he can hit the ground. He pulls Hyukjae close to his chest and keeps him standing on his own two feet. The plains below fall into the abyss; an avalanche of debris roars down the mountainside behind them. But those sounds of destruction fade into the background as Hyukjae focuses on Donghae's warmth.

 

"On three," Hyukjae says quietly, not even sure if the words reach the other man's ears. "One, two..."

 

They jump, holding on to each other for dear life, and somewhere along the fall disappear into the portal's light.

 

~*~

 

Hyukjae never hits the ground. When he opens his eyes, he finds himself still in Donghae's arms, surrounded by a blanket of darkness and silence. There seems to be no beginning or end to the void.

 

He gently releases himself from the other man's embrace, but doesn't fall like he expected. Hyukjae floats in place, the lack of forces allowing him to stay upright as he takes in more of their surroundings.

 

There's nothing here but absolute darkness. That holds true for nearly everywhere Hyukjae looks. But feet away, floating in the middle of that darkness, is the glowing world core. It reflects off of the two of them, making them glow just as brightly.

 

"We did it," Hyukjae says softly. He's almost afraid to break the spell with his words, but the world core remains floating in place with its strange gravity.

 

"I think I've had my share of adventure for a while."

 

There's exhaustion written into Donghae’s face behind that smile, telling a tale of harrowing trials and more courage than someone should ever have to demonstrate. The sheer impossibility of what they've managed to accomplish crashes down on Hyukjae shoulders. And to what end? Their original intentions float to the surface in the face of the approaching finale.

 

"I...this means I'm cured?"

 

"As soon as you take the core. Jungsoo had to separate your consciousness from your body to stop the infection, but once they're reunited, you'll be good as new."

 

"A second chance."

 

Emotion overwhelms Hyukjae's body in a sudden rush. Donghae lets him have a moment, lets him take hold of that tangle of emotions and feel it in its entirety. When Hyukjae lets it go, Donghae is waiting for him with infinite patience and understanding.

 

"Ready to wake up?" he asks.

 

His hand is outstretched, which Hyukjae gladly takes with his own before allowing himself one deep breath. He's seen enough of this artificial world; it's time to return to the real one.

 

"Let's go."

 

He reaches out for the world core, feeling his fingers come into contact with a rippling, indescribable surface.

 

And everything goes white.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

 

X.

 

The sound of rushing water fills Hyukjae's senses. It lulls him into a trance as the current carries him through a comforting sort of nothingness, ending at a light that's brighter than anything he's ever seen.

 

The sound cuts out. And Hyukjae opens his eyes.

 

A host of sensations travels from his head to the tip of his toes. All at once, Hyukjae can feel himself _exist_ again, feel the urges of hunger and thirst without psychic powers threatening to burst out of his skull. It's as if he's been reborn.

 

Hyukjae slowly turns his head to the side, looking past the metal apparatus of the same chair that he remembers settling into what seems like lifetimes ago. Donghae is looking at him, their gazes drawn to each other like poles of a magnet. The soft smile resting on his face feels like coming home.

 

When Hyukjae sits up, the sound draws the attention of the man on the opposite side of the room: Jungsoo, who'd so unwillingly helped them start this madman's quest. Jungsoo's eyes go incredibly wide, and he rushes to Hyukjae's side. He hugs Hyukjae once, then Donghae, then wipes off the tears off his face when he thinks they aren't looking.

 

"Both of you..." Jungsoo's voice cracks. "I'd started to think you wouldn't make it. I was so scared that...Thank you for coming back. Is there anything you need? Anything I can do to help?"

 

Hyukjae shares another silent look with Donghae, who gives him a slight nod.

 

"Actually..." Hyukjae asks, "what time is it?"

 

~*~

 

There's a grassy overlook outside of Jungsoo's house, one with a clear view of the sky. Hyukjae and Donghae sit quietly side by side, leaning into each other with an understanding beyond words.

 

They don't have to wait long before the sun starts to go down, leaving splashes of bright pinks and yellows in its wake. The beams stop just behind a hill in the far distance, illuminating it with a glowing halo. _This_ is truly the most beautiful thing Hyukjae has ever seen. There are no storms, no collapsing mountains, no enemies hiding in the shadows. Just them and the sunset.

 

Eyes still trained on the horizon, Hyukjae feels Donghae's fingers lightly tracing characters across his back. The strokes are featherlight, but Hyukjae would recognize that three-syllable proclamation anywhere. He smiles.

 

"Me, too."

 

_Fin_

 

 


End file.
